Due to the recent advent of cost-effective projectors, projectors are becoming fairly common in conference rooms, conference centers, and even homes. Recently, the cost of projectors has dropped, and as a result, some consumers are using projectors in home theater systems rather than using other available technologies, such as cathode ray tubes, rear projection micro-mirror displays, plasma displays, or liquid crystal displays. Besides the potential cost advantage a projector has over alternate technologies, the projector weighs less and takes up less space than other display technologies.
However, there are some drawbacks to using a projector. Projectors, with their necessary power cords and cables tend to create trip hazards, create significant set up and tear down time, and present clutter, thereby potentially distracting audiences from the content of the projected presentation. Projectors present other potential sources of distraction, such as light leakage, noise from a cooling fan, and highly localized exhaust heat. Specifically, when a projector is placed on a table and an image is projected to a screen or other surface that is substantially above the projector height, the height mismatch causes the projector and the projection surface to be at an oblique angle, thereby distorting the projected image. Placing a projector on a table also subjects the projector to vibration associated with table use, such as people taking notes, etc. As a result, the projected image may jitter and be of a lower quality.
When projectors are used, these known and undesirable effects can significantly detract from the quality of presentation, thereby potentially dissuading customers from buying new projectors, especially for the home theater market.